''The Man Who Walked Between the Towers'' is an American

children's A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person young ...

picture book A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. With the narrative told primarily through text, they are distinct from comics, which do so primarily through sequential images. The images ...

written and illustrated by the American author

Mordicai Gerstein Mordicai Gerstein (November 24, 1935 – September 24, 2019) was an American artist, writer, and film director, best known for illustrating and writing children's literature, children's books. He illustrated the comic mystery fiction series ...

. Published in 2003, the book recounts the achievement of

Philippe Petit Philippe Petit (; born 13 August 1949) is a French high-wire artist who gained fame for his unauthorized high-wire walks between the towers of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris in 1971 and of Sydney Harbour Bridge in 1973, as well as between the T ...

, a French man who walked on a

tightrope Tightrope walking, also called funambulism, is the skill of walking along a thin wire or rope. It has a long tradition in various countries and is commonly associated with the circus. Other skills similar to tightrope walking include slack rope ...

wire between the roofs of the twin towers of the World Trade Center in August 1974. Gerstein won the 2004

Caldecott Medal The Randolph Caldecott Medal, frequently shortened to just the Caldecott, annually recognizes the preceding year's "most distinguished American picture book for children". It is awarded to the illustrator by the Association for Library Servic ...

for his illustrations.American Library Association
"2004, Mordicai Gerstein"
Caldecott Medal Winners, 1938 - Present], American Library Association, URL accessed 27 May 2009. The book has been adapted into a film and a ballet.

Synopsis

The story follows the French street performer turned high-wire artist,

, as he attempts what he describes as 'the coup of the century.' Once the idea of walking a high-wire between the twin towers occurs,

becomes obsessed with it. With considerable deliberation and planning, he finally achieves his dream coup one early August morning in 1974. Before the notorious high-wire walk across the twin towers, he also walks a high-wire on the Notre Dame de Paris, Notre Dame where he lived in Paris, France. Since the twin towers were still under construction,

and his friend disguised themselves as construction workers and easily blended in with the rest of the construction crew to sneak up to the south tower. They took around 440 lbs of cable through the elevator to the top 10 floors and waited until nightfall to carry it up 180 stairs onto the roof. At midnight, two more of his friends came to help. They tied a fishing line through an arrow and shot it across to Philippe 140 feet away from the north tower. However, they missed their mark due to the wind, and the arrow landed on a ledge. Philippe manages to retrieve the arrow by crawling down the ledge of the tower. To this line, he attached a stronger line, which his friends pulled back and he tied it to a cable that was 5/8 of an inch thick. The cable was so heavy that it took them 3 hours to secure the line from across the two towers. By the dawn of August 7, 1974, they tightened the ropes between the twin towers. Philippe then put on his black shirt and tights (which were specially prepared for the occasion), picked up his 28-foot balancing pole, and started walking on the wire. He felt, "alone and absolutely free", as author Mordecai Gerstein writes. The bystanders noticed someone walking between the two towers and quickly notified the police. Officers rushed to the roof of the towers and yelled to Philippe, "You're under arrest!" For almost an hour Philippe walked, danced, and leaped back and forth between the wire. He even laid down to rest. When he felt completely satisfied, he walked towards the tower and held out his wrists towards the handcuffs. They brought Philippe to court and the judge sentenced him to perform in the park for the children of the city. This he did happily, though during his performance kids jerked his wire and Philippe fell but caught himself.

Adaptations

The book was adapted as an animated short film of the same name in 2005 by

Michael Sporn Michael Sporn (April 23, 1946 – January 19, 2014) was an American animator who founded his New York City-based company, Michael Sporn Animation in 1980, and produced and directed numerous animated TV specials and short spots. Sporn was nominat ...

for Weston Woods Studios, Inc"The Man Who Walked Between the Towers". Retrieved 2006-09-18. and it was narrated by

Jake Gyllenhaal Jacob Benjamin Gyllenhaal (; ; born December 19, 1980) is an American actor. Born into the Gyllenhaal family, he is the son of director Stephen Gyllenhaal and screenwriter Naomi Foner, and his older sister is actress Maggie Gyllenhaal. He ...

. The film received the Audience Choice Award for best short film at the 2005

Heartland Film Festival The Heartland International Film Festival is a film festival held each October in Indianapolis, Indiana. The festival was first held in 1992, its goal is to "inspire filmmaker Filmmaking (film production) is the process by which a motion pictu ...

,"Heartland Film Festival Concludes Another Record Breaking Year". 2005. Retrieved 2006-09-18. and the award for Best Short Animation Made for Children at the 2006 Ottawa International Animation Festival. It is included as an extra on the DVD of the Oscar-winning British documentary film ''

Man on Wire ''Man on Wire'' is a 2008 documentary film directed by James Marsh. The film chronicles Philippe Petit's 1974 high-wire walk between the Twin Towers of New York's World Trade Center. It is based on Petit's 2002 book, ''To Reach the Clouds'', ...

'' (2008). The book was also adapted as a two-act ballet of the same name at Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey. It was conceived, choreographed, and directed by Paule Turner, premiering in December 2008 to exceptionally good reviews.'Towers' an all-around dance department hit". ''The Whit Online''. 11 December 2008. Retrieved 2006-09-18. Dancing was the primary medium, and the production also used puppetry, especially during the wirewalking sequence. '' The Walk'', a biographical drama film directed by

Robert Zemeckis Robert Lee Zemeckis (born May 14, 1952) is an American filmmaker. He first came to public attention as the director of the action-adventure romantic comedy '' Romancing the Stone'' (1984), the science-fiction comedy '' Back to the Future'' film ...

and starring

Joseph Gordon-Levitt Joseph Leonard Gordon-Levitt (; born February 17, 1981) is an American actor. He has received various accolades, including nominations for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for his leading performances ...

as Philippe Petit, was released in September 2015 by TriStar Productions.

Critical reception

''The Man Who Walked Between The Towers ''was published to very strong and heartfelt reviews for the story and the illustrations by Gerstein. ''

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...

'' said, "Readers of all ages will return to this again and again for its history, adventure, humor, and breathtaking homage to extraordinary buildings and a remarkable man." ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

'' described it as "Gerstein's dramatic paintings include some perspectives bound to take any reader's breath away. Truly affecting." The School Library Journal claimed, "With its graceful majesty and mythic overtones, this unique and uplifting book is at once a portrait of a larger-than-life individual and a memorial to the towers and the lives associated with them."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Man Who Walked Between the Towers 2003 children's books Children's books adapted into films Works adapted into ballets Children's non-fiction books American picture books Caldecott Medal–winning works World Trade Center Roaring Brook Press books

Synopsis

Adaptations

Critical reception

See also

References